About This Quiz

Do you know when Toronto, Ottawa and Canada's other great cities were established, or what the original names were for these population centers? Know how the country fared in WWI or WWII, or what major event occurred in Canada on July 20, 2005? If you think you know everything about the history of this nation, prove it with this Canadian history quiz!

The world's second largest country has so much more to offer than maple leaves, poutine and top-notch hockey players. The nation also has a rich and storied history that dates back well over 10,000 years, when the earliest people migrated from Alaska and the Yukon into what is now known as Canada.

Like its southern neighbor, the United States, Canada's story begins with a rich native culture which pre-dated European colonization by centuries. Since the first European settlements were established in Canada around the 16th century, the First Nations people have faced many of the same struggles seen by Native Americans further south.

Over time, people flocked to cities like Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal, which became global centers of finance, food, fashion and culture. The country gained its independence from Great Britain and became a world power in its own right.

Do you know the events that shaped Canada into the country it is today? Take our quiz to find out!

Canada experienced one of its most significant military victories at the Battle of Vimy Ridge during WWI. More than 100,000 Canadians fought in this battle in France, defeating the Germans during an April snowstorm in 1917.

After the U.S. stock market crash of 1929, Canada was plunged into a decade-long economic depression. By 1933, 27 percent of the work force was unemployed. In 1934, the Bank of Canada was established in an attempt to begin to stabilize the economy.

Hudson Bay Company is older than Canada as a nation. Granted a corporate charter by the British government in May 1670, the fur trading firm served as a de facto government in the area before more permanent systems of government were established.

Saskatchewan led the charge toward Canada's modern system of universal health care. The province made hospital visits universal in 1947, then expanded this program to include regular doctor visits in 1962. The 1984 Canada Health Act consolidated provincial programs and serves as the basis for Canada's current system.

Canadian confederation occurred on July 1, 1867, when New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and the Province of Canada united to form the Dominion of Canada. The event is celebrated by Canadians each year on July 1 as Canada Day,

Five years after Columbus sailed the ocean blue, King Henry VII of England sent John Cabot to find a passage to Asia. Instead, Cabot stumbled on Newfoundland and Labrador, claiming the land for England.

In 1922, a pair of researchers at the University of Toronto injected insulin into a human patient for the first time, saving his life and changing the lives of diabetes patients forever. Their work earned them the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1923.

Way back in the day, the Iroquois chose the name Toronto, which means "place where trees stand on water." When Europeans came to Canada, they called this city York. It got its original name back in 1834.

After British Columbia became a Canadian province, the nation was able to extend the Canadian-Pacific Railroad from coast to coast. By 1885, it was the longest railway in the world, and played a huge role in helping to grow and populate western Canada.

Canada passed the Civil Marriage Act on July 20, 2005, allowing unions between same-sex couples. The Act made Canada the third country in the world and the first in the Americas to recognize gay marriages.

Canada's one-dollar gold-colored coin was introduced in 1987. Known as a loonie because it has an image of a common bird known as a loon on one side, it's also decorated with an image of Queen Elizabeth II on the other face.

Just like Native Americans in the U.S., the First Nations groups in Canada faced extreme difficulties brought on by European colonization. In 2008, Prime Minister Stephen Harper made an official apology to these groups for the way they had been treated in the past.

In 1965, Canada officially adopted the red and white maple leaf as its national flag. Before that, the country used the Canadian Red Ensign, which featured both the British flag and the Canadian coat of arms.

Five groups formed the Iroquois Confederacy, including the Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas and Senecas. Because the date was passed down orally, it is not clear if the Confederacy was established in 1442 or 1451.

In 1875, the Canadian Geological Survey found oil sands in Alberta. They were first subject to commercial extraction in the 1930s, and by 2004, the oil sands of Alberta were producing a million barrels a day.